How the series was reported

The reporting is based largely on the personal recollections of the candidates themselves although information from other sources — newspaper archives, interviews with other individuals and court, military and election records — was also used.

Perched high above him on the dais, the five school board members stared down at Bob Filner, father of two, as he nervously tripped over his words at a microphone.

They were annoyed by his question about possible school closures, an issue they had discussed at a previous meeting. Hardly anyone was there as Filner explained that he just found out about their vote and second-guessed how shuttering Hardy Elementary — where his children went — would improve education.

One official snapped back that the board knew what was best for his children’s education.

Filner left insulted and infuriated.

A San Diego State University history professor and parent-teacher association president, Filner couldn’t understand why Hardy was on a list of 27 schools being considered for consolidation and closure to save money. Parents loved the school and it was jam-packed with students.

He had waited hours at the school board meeting for his allotted three minutes of public comment so he could ask a simple question. “Why are you closing the school?”

The response he received shocked him into action.

It was Nov. 28, 1978, and Bob Filner’s long career in politics — school board president, city councilman, U.S. congressman, candidate for San Diego mayor — had just begun.

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Few people went to San Diego Unified School District board meetings in large part because they took place on Tuesday afternoons. That wasn’t a problem for Filner. He lectured on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. His Tuesdays were wide open.

He started going to every meeting. He quickly realized the brusque treatment he received from the board was standard operating procedure.

Within weeks of his first encounter with the board, Filner assembled a coalition of parents representing 20 schools. They demanded greater parent participation in the closure evaluations and more time to study the plan.

Public hearings ensued at which school officials tried to explain their decision-making process as boos rained down on them. In the end, none of the schools was closed.

But the victory wasn’t enough for Filner. He wanted to see a change in leadership. He searched for someone to run for school board the following year, but everyone he asked said he should look in the mirror.

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No one could ever accuse Filner of being passive.

In 1961, the 18-year-old Cornell University student boarded a bus to Jackson, Mississippi, as part of the “Freedom Rides” for civil rights. He and others were arrested for allegedly disturbing the peace and inciting a riot. He refused to pay bail and spent nearly two months in jail.